By Brazil Stock Guide — PicPay, through its Nasdaq-listed vehicle PicS N.V. (Nasdaq: PICS), denied any wrongdoing and rejected allegations of improper charges in salary-advance transactions offered to public servants in Brazil’s Federal District, after prosecutors launched Operation Juro Zero to investigate an alleged payroll-deduction fraud scheme involving public and private actors.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office of the Federal District and Territories, known as MPDFT, said the investigation points to serious crimes and estimated losses of more than R$81 million. Prosecutors said the case involves discounts applied to the payroll of Federal District public servants and is also examining the alleged participation of Ney Ferraz Júnior, the former Federal District economy secretary, and Paulo Henrique Costa, the former president of Banco de Brasília, known as BRB.
PicPay said its products and services are structured and offered in compliance with applicable rules and are subject to internal control and supervision mechanisms. The company also said the advanced amount was made available on the customer’s own card, after a request made by the user through the app, with no intermediaries or associations involved and no charge in that modality.
MPDFT said 44 search-and-seizure warrants were carried out in the Federal District, São Paulo and Curitiba. The warrants were authorized by the Special Council of the Federal District Court of Justice. São Paulo is where PicPay is headquartered. Prosecutors said no arrests were made during the operation.
MPDFT told Brazil Stock Guide that the case related to Operation Juro Zero is under seal.
The operation is being led by the Deputy Attorney General’s Office, the Consumer Protection Prosecutor’s Office and the Special Group to Combat Organized Crime. Prosecutors said the measures were aimed at preserving evidence, identifying the role of those involved and deepening the investigation.
According to MPDFT, the possible crimes under investigation include active and passive corruption, insertion of false data into computerized systems, money laundering, crimes against the popular economy, crimes against consumer relations and criminal organization.
The investigation is focused on two fronts.
The first involves a product described as “salary advance, with no cost to the Federal District,” offered through Conta PicPay and the Cartão Benefício. According to prosecutors, there are indications that the product may have operated as a credit transaction with financial charges, even though it was presented as an interest-free service.
Payroll deductions linked to the product exceeded R$80 million, MPDFT said. In 2024, salary-advance amounts deducted from payroll totaled R$11.7 million. By August 2025, the amount had risen to more than R$70 million, according to prosecutors, with interest charges.
MPDFT said the product was implemented without prior studies on its economic and financial impact on public servants, without defined limits for charges and without adequate oversight mechanisms. Prosecutors said the effective annualized rate charged in some cases may have exceeded 261% per year.
The second front involves deductions made in favor of the Association of Public Servants of the Federal District, known as ASDF, and related companies, including JR Serviços de Informações Cadastrais Ltda., also known as CBBrazil; Peak Sociedade de Empréstimo entre Pessoas S.A.; and Vemcard.
According to prosecutors, those companies offered credit transactions to public servants through payroll deductions linked to codes intended for association and health benefits. MPDFT is investigating possible irregularities in the use of those payroll codes and whether charges were made without valid authorization from public servants or in disagreement with the stated purpose.
MPDFT said ASDF’s collections grew by more than 48,000% in less than two years.
The payroll consignments were processed through Consigserv, a system used by BRB, BRB Serviços S.A. and Neoconsig Tecnologia S.A., according to prosecutors.
Among the individuals listed in local reports as targets of the operation are Ferraz; Costa; and Eduardo Chedid Simões, PicPay’s chief executive officer.
Chedid has led PicPay since 2022 and, in 2024, also took over the group’s international holding company. With more than three decades of experience in Brazil’s payments industry, he previously served as CEO of Elo, chief commercial officer at Cielo, vice president at Visa and director at Credicard. He also served on the board of Abecs, Brazil’s credit card and services industry association, between 2015 and 2021.
The Federal District’s Economy Secretariat said in a statement that it is cooperating with authorities and granting access to the facilities and materials requested. The agency also said the investigation concerns the conduct of public officials, not the institutional conduct of the Secretariat.
Operation Juro Zero increases scrutiny of payroll-linked credit and salary-advance models in Brazil’s Federal District, a sensitive market because it involves direct access to public servants’ paychecks and state authorization for automatic payroll deductions.
The case remains in the investigative stage. There has been no judicial finding of fraud or liability against those cited.
Read PicPay’s full statement, translated from Portuguese:
“PicPay reaffirms its commitment to strict compliance with the laws and regulations applicable to the financial and payment sectors.
The company does not recognize any irregularity in the transactions mentioned and rejects the allegation of improper charges. Its products and services are structured and offered in accordance with current rules and are subject to rigorous control and supervision mechanisms.
The advanced amount was made available on the customer’s own card, after a request made by the customer through the app, with no intermediaries or associations and with no charge in that modality.
PicPay maintains a solid corporate governance, risk management and compliance structure, aligned with market best practices and the highest regulatory standards.
The company will continue to fully cooperate with the competent authorities and is confident that any necessary clarifications will confirm the regularity of its conduct.”